


sweet dreams, timaus

by mellieforyellie



Category: Homestuck
Genre: Alpha Timeline, Gen, Sadstuck, alpha!dave - Freeform, alpha!rose - Freeform
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2012-09-07
Updated: 2012-09-07
Packaged: 2017-11-13 17:52:11
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,474
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/506136
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/mellieforyellie/pseuds/mellieforyellie
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>It has been three long years, and you are just as scared as you were when you were twelve.</p>
            </blockquote>





	sweet dreams, timaus

Your name is DAVE STRIDER, and it has been three long years.

It has been three horrifying long, depressing years since the Scratch had struck, and you had woken up back home, almost like nothing had changed. You have Bro back, but this time, it was you raising him. You even found your impossibly old pair of smaller shades, exactly like his old ones, and he had gurgled and clapped happily when you put them on him.

You named him Dirk.

Between trying to take care of him, and fighting off the hordes of Imperial Drones, you didn’t have time for much else.

But one night, while he was asleep and all was calm around you in the dead of night, your trembling hands logged you onto Pesterchum. You would have very nearly broke town into tears when you saw the lit up, smiling yellow face of tentacleTherapist.

**\-- tentacleTherapist [TT] started pestering turntechGodhead [TG] –-**

TT: Dave?

TT: Is that you?

TT: Please, please tell me it’s you.

 

Except that did.

You type out lame responses through your blurry eyes.

 

TG: rose ohgod

TG: rose

TG: thank god you are here rose

TG: im scared

TG: everything is fucked

TT: I know.

TG: i cant fix it rose

TG: i cant fix it like i could before

TT: Neither can I.

TT: And I’m terrified.

 

You breathe in deep, and try not to awake the sleeping form of three-year old Dirk next to you.

 

TG: rose oh my god

TG: where are you?

TT: I think I’m in my old house.

TT: It’s hard to tell without all the disturbing wizard paraphernalia.

TG: even in this shit you can still make me laugh

TG: you fucking crazy batshit witch

TT: I try.

TT: Where are you?

TG: im in my old place too

TG: do you have mom lalonde

TT: Yeah.

TT: I do.

TG: …..how is she

TT: She’s an absolutely gorgeous little girl.

TT: She called me Mom the other day.

TG: oh

TT: Yeah.

TT: I cried. Really hard.

TG: its hard rose

TG: its hard being a kid and growing up

TG: and nobody understands

TT: I know.

 

It’s all you can do to not sob. You hate this, you hate all of this — what happened to being carefree? When the only thing you had to worry about was when Bro was going to suddenly attack you? You take a shuddering breath and type out your request.

 

TG: we need to meet up

TG: or something

TT: That sounds like a good idea.

TG: i dont know where though

TG: its really dangerous here because of the fleets

TG: but im afraid that if i leave theyll destroy this place

TT: We can come there.

TT: You’ve been able to hold up until now, and I’m sure that me being there won’t hinder you.

TG: ok

TG: ok

TT: Breathe, Dave.

TG: im trying

TG: im trying and ive been keeping up a brave face for dirk but

TG: im scared

TG: rose i dont know what to do

TT: Dave, it’s alright.

TT: That’s why we’re going to get together.

TG: right

TG: right

TG: ok

TT: And,

TT: Dirk?

TG: bro

TG: dirk is bro

TG: thats what i named him

TT: It’s a nice name.

TG: thanks

TG: what did you name mom lalonde

TT: Roxy.

TG: wow man thats a fucking badass name

TG: for real

TG: shes gonna be that epic bitch in barfights with the broken vodka bottle

TG: kickin ass everywhere

TT: ...This seems accurate.

TT: I didn’t know her when she was a teenager, but yeah, that definitely sounds like her.

TG: man her and dirk are gonna be some boss ass team

TG: ectosibling stri-londe

TG: kicking ass everywhere with vodka and robots

TT: Robots?

TG: oh yeah

TG: little man is this fucking mechanical genius

TG: like hes only three but he built this little companion for himself

TG: well along with cal

TT: Cal’s there?

TG: goddammit yes

TG: i cannot get rid of that fucker

TG: im glad to have him though

TG: reminds me of

TG: home

TT: Yeah, home.

TT: Home sounds nice right now.

 

You almost jump out of your skin when Dirk begins crying in the bed behind you. You type out a quick goodbye to Rose, and you hope it isn’t a real goodbye.

 

TG: fuck hes awake

TG: i gotta go

TG: but look hit me up later and ill try to coordinate around drone attacks to get you guys up here

TT: Alright.

TT: And Dave?

TG: yeah

TT: I love you.

TT: And good luck.

TG: i love you too rose

TG: stay safe

TT: Yeah.

**\-- tentacleTherapist [TT] has ceased pestering turntechGodhead [TG] \--**

You take Dirk into your arms and hold him, humming a lullaby you had mixed yourself, just for him. You hold his head tightly to your chest, and still humming, you cry.

It had been three years, and you finally got to speak with her. You were so _happy_ , despite how morbid an adjective that seemed. But you knew that she was alive, that she was _okay_ , and she was even taking care of a big-one-turned-little-one like you were. You were so happy at the hope of seeing another human being, of seeing _her_.

 You cry.

“Bro?” Dirk questions in his small, childish voice, reaching up and under your own shades to wipe away your tears. “You okay, Bro?” 

For just a second, a split second, you sob even harder — and in that second, he is hugging you around your neck, standing on your thighs and hugging you so tightly you feel like you’re being choked. You hug him back, but make sure that you don’t put enough pressure to hurt his tiny, fragile body.

“I’m okay, little man,” you whisper through your hiccupping sobs. “I’m okay. You’re okay. We’re all okay. We’re gonna meet one of my friends soon. She has a friend for you, too.”

He pulls back, smiles at you and says, “Okay, whatever you say.”

And when you both curl up on your bed, you kiss his forehead and whisper “Sweet dreams” like you have every night.

* * *

It was another two years before you saw Rose.

Both of your schedules were hard to coordinate, and you were always nervous about leaving the apartment for too long. But, a day after a drone attack, your glasses light up with a single message 

**\-- tentacleTherapist [TT] began pestering turntechGodhead [TG] –-**

 

TT: We’re here.

TG: oh

TG: ohshit

TG: ok

TG: get to the harbor

TG: we’ll be there in fifteen

TT: See you there.

 

**\-- tentacleTherapist [TT] ceased pestering turntechGodhead [TG] –-**

When you got there, things weren’t at all like you expected. She was so, so different. But you didn’t have time to fuck around and meet each other all over again, and she understood that, and wrapped her little squirt up in her arms and got on the rocketboard with you.

When you finally landed inside your meager little apartment, you two pay no attention to the five year olds staring at each other with apprehension, and hug.

“Hey,” you say, weakly.

“Hey.” She sounds just as tired as you feel.

When you pull away, Dirk nudges you in the thigh (where his elbow comes up to) with the smallest smirk in place. You shove him by the head. “Not like that, little man.”

“I don’t think that’s very good parenting,” Rose says with a small smile, knowing the countless years of ‘training’ Bro had made _you_ endure through.

“That was a nice shove,” you say, pulling him back toward you and ruffling his hair. “I coulda thrown him across the damn room.”

She pulls Roxy to her side and covers her ears for a moment playfully. “Watch your mouth around the child. I have some class.” Then she smiles (ironically) and lets her go.

“Oh please,” you snort, laughing all the same. “I bet you read her hours of your wizard porn.”

This time, Rose scowls at you. “I’ll have you know that I write classical literature. _Complacency of the Learned_ is a bestseller.”

“Oh, right, sorry, I forgot that they only fuck in your fanfiction.”

Roxy squints with a questioning look up at Rose. “Momma, what’s fanfiction?”

Rose only smiles at the girl and pats her cheek. “Didn’t I tell you not to listen to a word he says?” You laugh, _really_ laugh for the first time in a very long time, and she grins back at you, before turning back to Roxy. “Why don’t you and Dirk go get to know each other?” She shoots you a look.

You slap Dirk on the back. “Go on, dude. Show her your robots and stuff. And don’t corrupt her.” He grins and nods, before approaching the girl with his hands in his pockets. You can tell he’s a little shy. She smiles brightly at him and they walk away to play.

Now, you take a moment to really get a good look at Rose. She’s definitely older, like you are. You’re both still in your mid-twenties, but look at least five years older. She has that same purple headband and lipstick that match her eyes. Her figure is more womanly, more pronounced than when you two last saw each other.

She smiles at you, stepping closer to you. “Still have those ridiculous shades John got you?”

“Of course I do,” you answer in a whisper. She stares at you with sad eyes, and murmurs an apology. She lifts the glasses off your face with careful precision, and sets them on the table.

“Are you okay?” she whispers.

You shake your head, before answering, barely audible, “No.”

And then she is holding you, with her arms tight around your neck, and you clutch the fabric at her waist with all you can. You feel her crying, too, and pull her into your lap. You both cry into each others shoulders until you just can’t anymore.

“I feel so pathetic,” you whisper into her ear. “I feel so pathetic, and useless, and weak b-because I’m just as scared as I was when I was twelve. Even more, because of him. Because I have to live for him.”

“I know,” she murmurs into your neck, and you can still feel her tears sliding down the back of your shirt. “I used to complain about her so much, but she’s the only thing that keeps me going.” It’s not an insult, just a fact, and you know this. You know this because you feel the exact same way.

“I have to prepare him before I could ever leave him. I couldn’t otherwise.”

“But Dave,” she says in a breaking voice, and you know there’s not good news coming. “I Saw.”

You don’t reply.

Rose buries her nose further into your neck and clutches at your shirt. “We have to leave them soon. We’ll have to die so that they can live. Our younger selves will do the rest from there.”

You pull away and stare at her in horror. You can’t breathe. Your head is spinning. 

“B-But,” you stutter, glancing over to the closed door where your kids are, “what will they do?”

She doesn’t look at you. “He gets stronger. Trains with the robots he builds. Stays here. I drop her off in a community somewhere. She helps everyone. Herself. Saves everyone. Eventually.”

“And how do we help in the past? I can’t remember anything like that.”

She smiles at you sadly, knocking you lightly on the head. “Come on, you’re the Knight of Time.”

“Oh.”

It was all just another timeline, you were just another doomed Dave in a doomed reality.

Well, for you, anyway.

Dirk survived, and well, that was enough for you.

* * *

 

It was another two years before she contacted you again.

**\-- tentacleTherapist [TT] started pestering turntechGodhead [TG] --**

TT: Dave.

TT: It’s time.

TG: oh

TT: I’m at the harbor.

TT: I’ll wait as long as you need me to.

TG: thats good

TG: im not sure how long this will take

TT: Take your time.

TT: I believe in you.

TG: thanks

TG: im going to need that

 

**\-- tentacleTherapist [TT] ceased pestering turntechGodhead [TG] –-**

Dirk, now seven, now a brilliant little fuck who had already built several functioning, intelligent robots, who you had already taught so well, who was a funny little fucker, who reminded you _so much_ of the adult you were raised by, was sleeping.

You couldn’t bear to leave him alone, to just abandon him. To let him wonder what the fuck happened to you.

But you were far too much of a coward to tell him goodbye to his face.

Instead, you kiss him on the forehead like one of John’s cheesy, ironic Nic Cage movies, leave a note with Cal, and whisper “Sweet dreams” as you walk out the door, just like you always used to.

When you meet up with Rose, she takes your hand and squeezes. “Are you okay?”

You don’t look at her. “No. But I never will be. And I’ve accepted that.”

She squeezes your hand one more time, before letting go. “I think he turns out great.”

You grin at her. “Me too.”

* * *

  _dirk_

_i dont know how to tell you this and i know youll be freaking out when you wake up but_

_im gone  
_

_like forever_

_well not forever-forever but thats a different story that youll learn eventually_

_dont come looking for me_

_dont try to find me_

_because i wont be anywhere_

_some things happened and some shit went down and it came down to that rose and i have to die for you and roxy to live and i know that this is unfair as fuck because believe me i know but you have to stay strong buddy_

_i want you to continue your training like ive been teaching you make a robot to train with you whatever you have to do but do not stop fighting  
_

_keep in contact with roxy both of your lives depend on it and some others too but youll figure all of that out later_

_i know none of this makes sense right now and youre confused and hurt and angry and i get it because you did the same thing to me and im probably not helping but_

_im sorry that i had to leave you like this but you are worth a lot more alive than i am and i dont know if i couldve handled it if i told you face to face  
_

_just know that you always have been and always will be so much stronger than me_

_  
_

_i love you bro_

_dave_

Your name is DIRK STRIDER, and you try not to let your tears blur up the red ink.


End file.
